COMPOSITE AIRCRAFT JOINT

• Main Authors: HADLEY, PAUL, QUAYLE, ALAN, FLOOD, JOHN
• Format: Patent
• Language: English; French
• Published: 01.10.2009
• Subjects: AEROPLANES; AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING; AIRCRAFT; AVIATION; COSMONAUTICS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; HELICOPTERS; INDEXING SCHEME ASSOCIATED WITH SUBCLASS B29C, RELATING TO PARTICULARARTICLES; PERFORMING OPERATIONS; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDEDFOR; SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER US CLASSIFICATION; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS; TRANSPORTING; WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE, IN GENERAL

The present invention relates to a joint between a laminar composite cover (12) and a second cover (15) (which may or may not be also formed from a composite material). The invention also relates to a method of manufacturing such a joint and a method of manufacturing a composite cover suitable for use in such a joint. The laminar composite cover (12) comprises a stack of layers, substantially all of the layers being shaped to form a joggle, each joggle comprising a first portion, a second portion where the layer extends substantially parallel with the first portion, and a ramp (33) between the first and second portions where the layer extends at an angle to the first and second portions, the number of layers being substantially the same on both sides of the ramp. The second cover (15) partially overlaps with the composite cover, and a clamp or fastener (31) holds the covers together where they overlap. The covers have external sides which are substantially aligned with each other so as to form a smooth aerodynamic surface.